Religious, Civil, and Economic Freedoms: What’s the Chicken and What’s the Egg?

This paper studies the relationship between religious liberty and economic freedom. First, three new facts emerge: (a) religious liberty has increased since 1960, but has slipped substantially over the past decade; (b) the countries that experienced the largest declines in religious liberty tend to have greater economic freedom, especially property rights; (c) changes in religious liberty are associated with changes in the allocation of time to religious activities. Second, using a combination of vector autoregressions and dynamic panel methods, improvements in religious liberty tend to precede economic freedom. Finally, increases in religious liberty have a wide array of spillovers that are important determinants of economic freedom and explain the direction of causality. Countries cannot have long-run economic prosperity and freedom without actively allowing for and promoting religious liberty.

An Empirical Note on the Long-Run Effects of Public and Private R&D on TFP

Several studies have examined the long-run effects of public and private R&D on TFP with mixed results. A common feature of these studies is that they measure public and private R&D activity using perpetual inventory stocks of public and private R&D capital, constructed under the assumption that the prices of GDP, public R&D, and private R&D move identically. This note argues that the results of these studies may be biased if the assumption of identical price movements is violated. The purpose and main contribution of this note is to estimate the long-run elasticities of TFP with respect to public and private R&D using both the stock of public/private R&D capital and an alternative measure of public/private R&D activity: the number of public/private sector researchers. In addition, this study contributes to the literature by developing a simple theoretical model that formalizes the intuition of how public and private R&D affect TFP, and by using both traditional and more recent panel methods. Contrary to previous studies, it is found—using numbers of researchers in the public and private sector—that there is strong evidence both of a significant positive long-run effect of both public and private R&D on TFP and of a greater effect of public R&D than private R&D. Consistent with the mixed evidence reported in the literature, it is also found that the use of public and private R&D stocks yields mixed results regarding the long-run effects of public and private R&D on TFP.

A designathon to co-create community-driven HIV self-testing services for Nigerian youth: findings from a participatory event

Background Youth are at high risk for HIV, but are often left out of designing interventions, including those focused on adolescents. We organized a designathon for Nigerian youth to develop HIV self-testing (HIVST) strategies for potential implementation in their local communities. A designathon is a problem-focused event where participants work together over a short period to create and present solutions to a judging panel. Methods We organized a 72-hour designathon for youth (14–24 years old) in Nigeria to design strategies to increase youth HIVST uptake. Proposals included details about HIVST kit service delivery, method of distribution, promotional strategy, and youth audience. Teams pitched their proposals to a diverse seven-member judging panel who scored proposals based on desirability, feasibility, potential impact and teamwork. We examined participants’ socio-demographic characteristics and summarized themes from their HIVST proposals. Results Forty-two youth on 13 teams participated in the designathon. The median team size was 3 participants (IQR: 2–4). The median age was 22.5 years (IQR: 21–24), 66.7% were male, 47.4% completed tertiary education, and 50% lived in Lagos State. Themes from proposals included HIVST integration with other health services, digital marketing and distribution approaches, and engaging students. Judges identified seven teams with exceptional HIVST proposals and five teams were supported for further training. Conclusions The designathon provided a structured method for incorporating youth ideas into HIV service delivery. This approach could differentiate HIV services to be more youth-friendly in Nigeria and other settings.

Is Merkel Cell Carcinoma of Lymph Node Actually Metastatic Cutaneous Merkel Cell Carcinoma?

Objectives The possibility of a so-called primary lymph node neuroendocrine carcinoma has been described in the literature. Here we evaluate cases fitting such a diagnosis and find that the cases demonstrate a convincing and pervasive pattern consistent with metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma. Methods Six cases of primary lymph node Merkel cell carcinoma and one case of metastatic neuroendocrine carcinoma at a bony site, all with unknown primary, were sequenced using a combination of whole-exome and targeted panel methods. Sequencing results were analyzed for the presence of an ultraviolet (UV) mutational signature or off-target detection of Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV). Results Four of six primary lymph node cases were positive for a UV mutational signature, with the remaining two cases positive for off-target alignment of MCPyV. One case of neuroendocrine carcinoma occurring at a bony site was also positive for a UV mutational signature. Conclusions We find no evidence to corroborate the existence of so-called primary Merkel cell carcinoma of lymph node.